Farkas Makes Pinhooking Bow at OBS

by Jessica Martini 
Dennis Farkas has been a Thoroughbred owner for over two decades, but will be making his first foray into the pinhooking arena during next week’s Ocala Breeders’ Sales Company’s Spring Sale of 2-Year-Olds in Training. Through the Woodford Thoroughbreds’ consignment, Farkas will offer hip 226, a filly by Tiznow and hip 439, a daughter of leading sire Tapit. 

“I’ve probably bought 60 or 70 horses in my day and I think I’ve sold one,” Farkas said Wednesday. “But it’s like any business that you’re in, they tell you, you need to diversify. I guess that’s what I am doing in the Thoroughbred business now, I’m diversifying. I like to race and that’s what I’ve always done, bought to race. That’s always what I enjoyed, but I am trying to diversify.” 

Farkas, who is president of Trico Surveying and Mapping, a company founded by his father in 1971, traces his love of racing back to family vacations as a child. 

“My mom and dad used to take us on vacations when I was a kid and we would always end up stopping at a horse track, Ellis Park or River Downs, and it was always a highlight of my summer to go to the horse races,” Farkas recalled. 
It was in the 1980s that Farkas first got involved in racehorse ownership. 

“I bought my first horse in the late ‘80s for about $1,500,” he explained. “She was an Ohio-bred and I raced her over at River Downs, Beulah Park and Thistledown. Back in those days, I was hoping she would win so I could make my car payment.” 

“I kind of got hooked,” he continued. “It was mostly claiming horses, we were claiming horses and buying some horses and racing them. In the last few years, I’ve done well with my business and things and I’ve had the opportunity to buy some better horses and have gone that route.” 

With the help of trainer Ian Wilkes, Farkas purchased three yearlings last fall. 

“We didn’t really go there with the idea that we were going to pinhook them all,” Farkas revealed. “Ian and I picked these three out, an Unbridled’s Song colt, the Tiznow and the Tapit. I wasn’t planning on keeping all of them; I was thinking I would probably sell at least one of them. We had the Unbridled’s Song colt in for [OBS] March [sale], but he had a splint and we ended up withdrawing him from the sale. So I get to race him and we decided to put these two in the sale.” 

Farkas paid $335,000 for the Tapit filly at last year’s Keeneland September sale. 

“I don’t buy in that range usually,” Farkas said. “Actually, Ian won’t let me buy in that range,” he amended. “I paid $200,000 for a Malibu Moon filly back in 2013 and $140,000 for a Congrats filly and $160,000 for a Tiznow filly, but usually when Ian and I are in there bidding and the price starts to get up there about six digits, that’s usually when he starts elbowing me and telling me to stop. The funny thing with this Tapit filly, he never told me to stop. He liked her that much.” 

The juvenile has not disappointed so far. 

“She is really awesome,” Farkas said. “It’s really kind of heartbreaking for me to even think about selling her. Everybody who has been around her, the guys over at Woodford and Ian, they are so high on her. It makes it harder for me to sell her. We’ve been around horses a lot and she is obviously the best horse I’ve ever owned. I’ve never spent that much on a horse, but she is by far the best filly that I’ve ever owned. I know that she hasn’t been to the track, but it’s going to be really hard for me to part ways with her.” 

Still with his motto of diversification, Farkas decided to put the filly through the OBS sales ring. 

“I talked to Ian about it and I talked to [Woodford general manager] Scott Kintz and [farm trainer] John Gleason and they all thought that, economic-wise, it made sense to go ahead and sell her, given that Tapit is doing as well as he is and they raised his stud fee to $300,000. They thought right now would probably be a good economic decision to sell.” 
The filly, out of a half-sister to Grade I winner Corinthian (Pulpit) and graded stakes winner Desert Hero (Sea Hero), worked a furlong during Wednesday’s third under tack show in :10 1/5. Farkas watched the work on his computer. 
“My wife watched the video with me this morning and as we were watching–I went ahead and hit the record on my phone because she gave me a price,” Farkas laughed. “And she said you can’t sell her for less than that. I’ve got it recorded, my wife telling me that.” 

The Tiznow filly was a $90,000 purchase at last year’s Fasig-Tipton October sale. She is out of Paradise Bound (Pulpit), a half-sister to graded stakes winner Unbridled Humor (Distorted Humor). The juvenile worked a quarter Tuesday in :22 3/5. 

“The Tiznow filly, we were a little disappointed in her time,” Farkas admitted. “She did everything well, she was well within herself and looked good on the track. She worked faster on the farm, quite a bit faster. We don’t really know why she didn’t work as fast as we thought she was going to, whether it was the track or just an off day, but she is one of those that will take a little time. I know a lot of people don’t like to hear that, but she is one that is probably going to need a little bit more time than the Tapit filly, but I think she is going to be a really nice filly, too. She looks good and has a good attitude. She is a Tiznow, she is just not going to be a two-furlong flying machine.” 

On his own or in partnership, Farkas currently has three horses in training with Wilkes. The two juveniles could join the group. 

“If things don’t work out, I’m not afraid to keep them at all,” he said. “If it doesn’t happen, I’m going to race them.” 
With his 25 years in the business, Farkas is still looking for his big horse. 

“I bought a filly off the track, her name was Aunt Patsy (Damascus), I bought her in 1990 or 1991,” Farkas said. “I raced her a little bit and I ended up breeding her to Is It True and got a filly named Iffy. She was my best horse. She never won a stakes, but she ran second in a couple of stakes. We’ve had two or three pretty nice horses, but I’m always hoping to get that big horse.” 

He concluded, “I don’t think you’re in this business unless you think you have a chance to have that horse one day. If you don’t have that dream, you’re probably not in this business.”